


Ring

by walking_through_autumn



Series: Movie Nights [2]
Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Gen, Movie Night
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-24
Updated: 2014-08-24
Packaged: 2018-02-14 12:29:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2191890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/walking_through_autumn/pseuds/walking_through_autumn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Where Kaneki worries over the state of his ribs and the adults develop a fear of the television screen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ring

**Author's Note:**

> More movie night fluff, I hope you enjoy :)

Kaneki had started maintaining a list in his head. It was called **_Things I Regret Most in My Life_** , more fitting for an angry youngster going through an identity crisis, but he figured with all that had happened in his life he deserved a list like that. While _Going Out with Rize_ still topped the list and somewhere below that was _Meeting Tsukiyama_ , this day he was seriously reconsidering the order of items on the list. Perhaps _Hunting Down a Red Herring Instead of Going Out with Sante to Get Movies_ would forever be his biggest regret.

It was a competition between death by crushed ribs or deafness by torn eardrums. He mused about the two options while idly twirling a lock of Hinami’s hair between his fingers. On the screen he could see another television screen, which was strange – this whole movie had been nothing but strange and he did not understand Sante’s taste. On the flip side, Hinami seemed to be enjoying it, and she was sitting quite still and entranced in his lap, cup of coffee long gone cold. There was a well in the screen within the screen. Kaneki did not think it was that scary or trance-worthy.

“Banjou, I think this part isn’t that scary,” he said, in an attempt to relieve some of the pressure on his torso so he could check the state of his ribs.

His words had the reverse effect of Banjou tightening his hold on Kaneki and burrowing his face further into Kaneki’s hair. The man let out a muffled squeak which went something like “I don’t believe you.” Kaneki let out his own squeak which meant “I think my ribs just disintegrated.”

Kaneki should have known it was a trap. That Ichimi, Jiro, and Sante taking up the center couch and leaving the snug carpet for them was obviously a ploy. A ploy for Banjou, Hinami, and Kaneki to settle on the carpet not knowing what was about to happen, without the slightest hint that this seat made it far too easy for Banjou to grab the most convenient security blanket – A.K.A Kaneki Ken Human-Ghoul Extraordinaire. He could not even turn around to shoot them a long-suffering look, because Banjou might not be combat strong, but a scared Banjou was a different thing altogether, and even if he wanted to muster up his strength to wriggle out of Banjou’s hold he did not have the heart to leave the man with nothing to clutch in his fear.

“Yeah, it ain’t that scary!” Ichimi chimed in.

“It’s only the TV switching on by itself,” Sante said, matter-of-fact, voice trembling. The two of them were suppressing their amusement very poorly.

Kaneki did not find it amusing. After all, they were not the ones whose ears were receiving the full assault of Banjou’s screams.

Jiro fidgeted in her place, the only one as absorbed as Hinami in the movie. “Why isn’t anything happening?” she whispered, leaning forward in her seat. Ichimi and Sante continued giggling like children and making ghost noises, channeling their inner three year old. “Ichimi, Sante, _shut up –_ ”

“Shhh,” Hinami said, eyes wide, and all the adults fell silent. Except Banjou, everybody was looking at the well where something was appearing.

_I have a bad feeling about this. A very bad feeling_ , Kaneki thought. Before he could say anything, Banjou peeked out of his hair, because it seemed that curiosity did kill the cat and the man must be masochistic in some way to sit through the movie with them.

“Please don’t freak out,” he whispered into the tense silence, just before Sadako crawled out of the well.

He wasn’t foolish enough to think that would work. Banjou let out a yelp-scream and even Hinami jumped in his arms. Still, he relaxed – as far as tense moments went that hadn’t been as bad as he thought. His eardrum might only be eighty percent torn.

Sante let out a sigh and said, “Well, that isn’t too bad – _holy **hell**_!”

This time Kaneki could not blame Banjou for screaming. As Sadako crawled through the screen within the screen Kaneki made a choked sound. But that was nothing compared to Banjou, who let out the most piercing shriek yet and scrabbled backwards into the couch, pulling Kaneki and Hinami along with him. On the couch chaos erupted from Banjou’s sudden movement – the siblings jumped and clung onto each other, a jumble of limbs and spilled coffee and manly yelps.

“I’m sorry for laughing!” Ichimi said. He must have grabbed onto Sante’s hand – Kaneki thought he heard bones crack and Sante’s quiet yowl of pain. “I’ll make offerings!”

“Idiot, she’s not coming for us – ” Jiro said, though she did not sound half convinced.

“She’s coming for us!” Banjou interrupted, half a sob, half a shrill shriek. Kaneki was amazed. Besides the fact that Banjou might have hit a pitch not known before to mankind or ghoulkind, it was the first full sentence the man had formed since the movie started. It seemed like his self-preservation instincts and the leader need to protect have kicked in.

“D-don’t be silly, it’s just a movie – _oh my god_ ,” Jiro said, hand over her heart. “Wow.”

Kaneki agreed with that sentiment. He was sure ghoul recovery powers or not, his torso would never be the same again.

It took several minutes, a lot of shaky laughter from the siblings, more whimpers from Banjou, and numerous reassurances from Kaneki that Sadako _did not_ crawl out of their own screen, before Kaneki realized that Hinami was much too quiet. “Hinami? Are you okay?” he asked, more concerned for her than for his non-existent ribs.

Slowly, as though it took effort for her to tear her eyes away from the screen, Hinami looked back at them with a smile of pure innocence and happiness that was entirely at odds with the gloomy, end-of-horror-movie light emanating from the screen. She looked like the previous ten minutes of pandemonium had not happened. “Big brother…I _like_ this movie.”

Banjou dropped his face into Kaneki’s hair and sobbed.

They all slept in the living room that night (after covering the TV screen). Hinami did not understand why all the adults insisted on it.


End file.
